Secondary clock.



L. O. BEARD.

SECONDARY CLOCK.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 7 19!].

Patented Nov. 26, 1918.

IN VEN TOR LAWRENCE O. BEARD, OF LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA.

SECONDARY CLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 26, 1918.

Application filed. March 7, 1917. Serial No. 153,083.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LAWRENCE O. BEARD, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Lancaster, in the county of Lancaster and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSecondary Clocks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention relates to improvements in secondary clocks andparticularly to such as employ mechanism controlled and actuated byelectromagnetic means,one object of the invention being to so constructa secondary clock that it shall be accurate in operation and at the sametime reduce to a minimum the noise of moving parts.

With this and other objects in view, the invention consists in certainnovel features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafterset forth and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure 1 is a sectional view on the linel1 of Fig. 3 showing the operating mechanism in elevation; Fig. 2 is asimilar view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3; .Fig. 3 is a plan view, and Fig.4 is a view of a modification.

1 represents a frame such as employed for secondary clock movements, and2 the escapement wheel of such-movement.

An arbor 3 is located in the upper portion of the frame 1 and a lever &having a general L-shape, is supported at the juncture of its uprightand horizontal portions, by said arbor. The depending portion of thelever 44; is made with laterally projecting arms to form a verge 5having pins or pallets 6 near the free ends of said arms for cooperation with the escapement wheel 2, and the notches between the teeth ofsaid escapement wheel are of such depth that the pallots of the vergewill not, during the oscillation of the verge, move to the bottoms ofsaid nctches,--thus minimizing the noise of the escapement.

An electro-magnet 7 is suitably supported in the frame 1 and is intendedto be included in the circuit of a master clock, as is well understood.An arbor 8 is mounted in the frame 1, above the poles of the magnet andcarries a swinging armature 9, connected with said arbor by means ofarms 11. and

12, the constructioi'i being such that the armature will oscillate overthe pole of the magnet in a direction at approximately right angles tothe axis of the latter. The er i 11 is made with an extension 13provided with a pin 14, with which latter one end of a spring 15 isconnected. The other end of said spring is attached to the frame 1, andsaid spring serves to move the swinging armature in a direction oppositeto that in which it is moved by the magnet. The arm 12 connecting thearmature with the arbor 8 is made in the form of av plate which extendsan appreciable distance beyond said arbor and is provided with a camslot 16 into which a pin 17 projecting laterally from the horizontal arm18 of the verge lever 4.- enters. By means of this construction, thearmature 9 will be oscillated by the action of the magnet 7 and spring15 and the verge will be oscillated by cooperation of the cam plate orarm 12 with the horizontal arm of the verge lever. As the moving of thedevices above described do not strike limiting stops of any kind, noisein their operation is reduced to a minimum.

A propelling pawl 19 is pivotally mounted or. the verge lever,(preferably on one of the arms of the verge 5) in position to engage theteeth of the escapemcnt wheel. In order to obviate noise which mightoccur if the pawl were permitted to drop deeply into the notches betweenthe teeth of the escapement wheel and strike the teeth in moving fromone to another, I provide a pair of small leaf springs 20 which aresecured at one end to a pin on theverge and near their free endsembrace'a pin 22 projecting laterally from the propelling pawl 19. Thesesprings will cause the pawl19 to float and prevent the same (during itsretrograde movement) from striking a tooth of the escapement wheelbehind the tooth which it will engage at the next forward movement ofthe pawl, and thus noise in the cooperation of the propelling pawl withthe escapement wheel will be prevented.

In escapement mechanism of the type to which my invention relateswherein the propelling of the escapement wheel and the time mechanism ofthe clock, is dependent solely upon the operation of the verge andpropelling pawl, it is important that retrograde pawl for the escapementwheel shall be provided. I therefore provide a retrograde pawl 23 hungloosely on the arbor 3 and adapted to engage the teeth of the ratchetwheel. In order to prevent noise which is usually caused by theretrograde pawl riding over the teeth of the escapement wheel andstriking said teeth, I provide leaf springs 24 secured to the frame 1and embracing a. pin 25 projecting laterally from said retrograde pawl.These springs will cause the pawlto float and prevent the same fromdropping against the teeth of the escapement wheel.

Slight changes might be made in the details of construction of myinvention without departing from the spirit thereof or limiting itsscope and hence I do not wish to restrict myself to the precise detailsherein set forth,thus instead of employing two leaf springs for causingthe pawls 19 and 23 to float, single springs 20 24 may be employed, andthe pawls may be provided with pins 22 22, between which said springsproject.

Having fully described m invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters-Patent, is

1. In a clock, the combination with an escapement wheel and a verge cooperable therewith, of a floatingpawl having a tooth to engage the teethof said wheel, yielding means normally holding said pawl supported withits tooth in position to engage a tooth of the Wheel and preventing saidpawl from dropping upon an advancing tooth of the wheel.

2. In a clock, the combination with an cscapement wheel, and a gravitypawl for cooperation therewith, of a spring connected with said pawl andnormally supporting the same in position to engage the escapement wheeland preventing it from dropping upon an advancing tooth of the wheel.

3. In a clock, the combination with a verge, an escapement wheel, aseparate propelling pawl carried by and movable with the verge, and anelectro-magnet, of an armature mounted to oscillate across the pole ofthe magnet, cam devices connecting said oscillatory armature with theverge to move the latter and the propelling pawl in one direction,

and a spring for moving said verge and pawl in the reverse direction.

L. In a clock, the combination with a verge, an escapement wheel, apropelling pawl movable with the verge, and an electromagnet, of anarmature mounted to oscillate over the pole of said magnet, an armhaving a cam slot, movable with said armature, and a pin on a part rigidwith the verge, said pin entering said cam slot.

5. In a clock, the combination with a frame, a verge mounted in saidframe and provided with an arm, an eseapement wheel, a propelling pawlmovable with the verge, and an electromagnet, of a swinging armaturemovable over the pole of the magnet, said armature provided with armspivotally mounted in the frame, cam connections between one of said armsand the verge arm, and a spring attached at one end to on of saidarmature arms and at the other end to the frame.

6. In a clock, the combination with an escapement wheel, a verge, andpawl to engage said wheel, of means causing said pawl to iloat andpreventing it from dropping onto the teeth of the escapement wheel.

7. In a clock, the combination with a frame, of a verge lever-mountedtherein and comprising in a unitary structure a verge and an arm, aneleetro-n'iagnet, an oscillatory armature therefor movable in onedirection by said magnet, cam devices connecting the oscillatoryarmature with the arm of the verge lever for transmitting motion fromsaid armature to the arm of the verge lever, a spring connected withsaid oscillatory armature for moving the same and the verge lever in theother direction, a propelling pawl movable with the verge lever forpropelling the escapement wheel, and a retrograde pawl for theescapement wheel.

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification in the presenceoftwo subscribing witnesses.

LAWVRENCE O. BEARD.

IVitnesses:

J No. L. McGovnnn, JOHN H. MYERS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, I). C.

